Educators learn how to better protect students

They are participating in free training at Top Guns in Terre Haute to learn more about active threats and how to combat them.

Posted: Apr. 18, 2018 7:25 PM

Updated: Apr. 18, 2018 10:50 PM

Posted By: Heather Good

TERRE HAUTE, Ind. (WTHI) - Vigo County school employees are learning how to better protect your kids. They are participating in free training at Top Guns in Terre Haute to learn more about active threats and how to combat them.

Employees gathered Wednesday for the first class.

Combat Force Academy is providing the training. The company is based out of Colorado and owned by military veterans.

Top Guns and the school corporation did not want to reveal details of the training. Officials say they do not want a potential threat to know what they are learning.

Director of Student Services Tom Balitewicz says, "I think training only makes you better in a real-life situation. It just makes that situation, if it does come up, a little bit easier to handle."

Those involved say this is a unique course educating those in the classroom how to stay alive and keep others alive, too.

Combat Force Academy Instructor Imri Morgenstern says, "If we have an active shooter scenario going inside of a school we've already kind of failed in a way but in case something like that happens our last means of being able to act is the people who are actually present there and we have people and they should be trained on what they can do."

More Vigo county staff members will participate in another class Thursday.

Administrators say they want parents to know this is the next step in school protection.

Balitewicz says, "We're preparing ourselves for anything that may happen in our school corporation and we want to be ready for anything that would occur and preparing and planning is really the most important thing that we can do."

School districts interested in this free training should contact Top Guns.